Fans of award shows are being spoiled this month with the long-awaited 74th Annual Tony Awards occurring on Sunday, September 26, and just the Sunday prior, the Emmy Awards airing on September 19. This year’s Emmys consist of many theatre favorites and we want to highlight these performers who have made the leap from stage to screen.
The filmed performance of Hamilton, which premiered on Disney+ in July 2020, ended up nabbing 12 nominations including nominations for Tony Award winners Lin-Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom, Jr., Daveed Diggs, and Renée Elise Goldsberry, Tony nominees Phillipa Soo and Jonathan Groff, along with Anthony Ramos, each nominated for their performances in the recording. The special filmed performance also received nominations for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded), Outstanding Picture Editing For Variety Programming, Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Variety Series Or Special, Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video Control For A Special, as well as a nomination for Thomas Kail in Outstanding Directing For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie.
Nominated leading actresses you may recognize from the Broadway stage include Tony winner Cynthia Erivo, Tony nominees Elisabeth Moss, Allison Janney, Jean Smart, and Emmy winner Uzo Aduba. Although she has yet to make her Broadway debut (one we eagerly anticipate), Mj Rodriguez has a strong theatre background, most known for starring in the Off-Broadway revival of Rent and for her groundbreaking performance in the 2019 Pasadena Playhouse production of Little Shop of Horrors, playing Audrey. Rodriguez makes history with her nomination in Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie category as the first transgender woman to earn an Emmy Award nomination in a major acting category.
Along with Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leslie Odom Jr., other nominated leading actors with Broadway connections include Tony Award winner Billy Porter, William H. Macy, and Ewan McGregor.
In addition to the previously mentioned nominated performances from Hamilton, you can also spot two-time Tony Award winner John Lithgow, Broadway veterans Ann Dowd, Aunjanue Ellis, Giancarlo Esposito, Kathryn Hahn, Rosie Perez, Yvonne Strahovski, Chris Sullivan, Hannah Waddingham, and Bradley Whitford nominated in the various supporting performance categories.
The Primetime Emmy Awards will air on September 19 on CBS, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer. 74th Annual Tony Awards will air the following Sunday, September 26 with a two-part, four-hour special on Paramount+ and CBS.